The present invention relates to a coin packaging machine for delivering a predetermined number of accumulated coins for an accumulating cylinder to a packaging zone by a delivery arm and packaging them in the packaging zone.
Methods for accumulating a predetermined number of counted coins in an accumulating cylinder and delivering them to a packaging zone by a delivery arm are roughly divided into two types. According to one type, accumulated coins discharged from the lower portion of the accumulating cylinder are supported from the lower side by the delivery arm and introduced into the packaging zone disposed below for packaging the coins. According to the other type, the accumulated coins in the accumulating cylinder are supported from the upper and lower sides by upper and lower arms and, when a two-split accumulating cylinder is opened, the accumulated coins are turned in the horizontal direction and delivered to the packaging zone for packaging. In each method, the accumulating cylinder is vibrated to arrange coins correctly in the horizontal direction. However, when large quantities of coins are packaged at a high speed, it is difficult to accumulate the coins perfectly a so-called irregular arrangement phenomenon occurs where the coins are not correctly arranged in the horizontal direction.
When coins which are irregularly arranged are delivered to the packaging zone, accidents often occur in which the arranged coins scatter or fall during delivery resulting in a shortage in the number of packaged coins.
As means for detecting such irregular arrangement, optical means has heretofore been adopted. More specifically, a through-hole is formed on the side portion of the accumulating cylinder and light is projected into the cylinder so that irregular arrangement of coins is detected when the light is intercepted by the coins. However, in some case, light leaks from a gap between coins to cause a detection error. As another means for detecting irregular arrangement, there is known a method in which, since accumulated coins collapse due to irregular arrangement when the accumulated coins are supported from the upper and lower sides and the upper delivery arm is therefore brought down below the prescribed position, the position of the upper arm thus brought down is detected by a switch. This detecting method, however, is still defective in that when irregular arrangement is detected, the accumulated coins collapse and scatter.